THE 2002 ELECTIONS: WEST; OREGON

Published: November 7, 2002

A deluge of last-minute ballots in Oregon's vote-by-mail election process has delayed the declaration of a winner in the governor's race. Ted Kulongoski, a Democrat, held a one-percentage-point lead over Kevin Mannix, a Republican. Pollsters are awaiting results from Multnomah County, which includes Portland, and Lane County, which includes Eugene. Both counties are heavily Democratic, which may aid Mr. Kulongoski.

Oregon's voting process takes much longer than most state systems to determine winners. ''Basically the pattern of the vote between Gore and Bush was very similar to the pattern of the vote that we've seen between Kulongoski and Mannix,'' said William M. Lunch, a political science professor at Oregon State University. ''If the Republicans are well organized and they get out their vote, they can seriously challenge the Democrats in statewide contests, but they generally lose.''

One exception is the Senate race in which Senator Gordon H. Smith, a Republican, decisively beat Bill Bradbury, a Democrat.